Jeonbuk was heavily tipped for the title before the season, and they didn’t disappoint. Only on three occasions did they not find themselves in the top 2 at the end of the round, and after they went top on matchday 18 they never looked back. He didn’t have his best season in recent memory, but Lee Dong-gook continued to be a goal threat for them up top. New acquisition Han Kyo-won settled nicely on the right to complement the threats of Lee Seung-gi and Leonardo. The emergence of young Lee Jae-sung was also a big plus for Jeonbuk.

Looking ahead: A dominant season in the league will need to be complemented by a better run in Asia next season. Jeonbuk got a favorable group, so they’ll expect to go deeper than they did this season. There are still questions about the attack as Lee Dong-gook will turn 36 next year.

Suwon surprised in the sense that while many thought they’d be a decent side, few predicted they would finish the league in 2nd. The biggest area of improvement for Suwon was probably their consistency. Second-year boss Seo Jung-won also seemed to find a better rotation for his attackers enabling him to get more out of the at-times streaky group of Santos, Roger, and Jung Tae-se. The new midfield pairing of Kim Eun-sun and Kim Du-hyun was also very strong.

Looking ahead: Can Suwon maintain and push on? Difficult to say. If the ownership wants, they of course could, but reinforcements (particularly in defense) will likely be needed. Suwon ended up in a very tricky AFC Champions League group which could really drain the side if they try to push hard in Asia.

Seoul struggled mightily for most of the first half of the season. Languishing in the bottom half before a very strong second half surge. That was offset by their (slightly) improbably run in Asia to the semifinals before they were dumped out by eventual champions Western Sydney. As a team Seoul was defined more by their overall group play and work ethic rather than any individual brilliance. It’s quite telling that rightback Cha Du-ri was nominated for the Player of the Year award. Their last minute winner over Jeju on the final day probably is a moment that defines their season. Just getting in at the end.

Looking ahead: If Seoul wants to continue to place high in the table and advance in Asia, serious reinforcement is needed. Like rivals Suwon, Seoul will (should they win their qualifier, which they should) end up in a tough group in the AFC Champions League, one that features Guangzhou Evergrande and Western Sydney. They’ll also need to avoid the slow domestic starts that have plagued them the last two years.

2014 must go down as a disappoint for Pohang. A strong start, but the sale (my opinion) of Lee Myeong-joo led to a slow and steady decline for the club, which in the end saw them miss out on Asian qualification. Along with Lee Myeong-joo, the other two names that shone for Pohang were attackers Kim Seung-dae and Kang Su-il. Unfortunately for the Steelers, those two were unable to really perform (and score) on a consistent basis for the club.

Looking ahead: Pohang will likely look to their strong youth system to try and find a replacement for Lee Myeong-joo. The team really lacked a creative player in the center of the pitch after Lee left, so that’s the priority. Pohang could benefit as they won’t compete in Asia while their rivals will, possibly giving them a chance to jump up the table.

Pohang’s Season by the Numbers
[table “” not found /]

Pohang’s Table Placement Round-by-Round
[table “” not found /]

[table “” not found /]

In the next post we’ll look at the middle clubs, 5-8, Jeju United, Ulsan Hyundai, Jeonnam Dragons, and Busan IPark.

K League Classic

Most recent soccer data here. The system is currently retrieving statistics from data feed.

#

Team

P

1

Ulsan

29

2

Seoul

25

3

Jeonbuk Motors

24

4

Daegu

22

5

Sangju Sangmu

20

6

Pohang Steelers

20

7

Gangwon

19

8

Suwon Bluewings

13

9

Seongnam

13

10

Jeju United

10

11

Gyeongnam

9

12

Incheon United

6

Most recent soccer data here. The system is currently retrieving statistics from data feed.

May 25, 2019

Seongnam

1 - 4

Ulsan

Gangwon

0 - 1

Jeju United

Pohang Steelers

0 - 0

Seoul

May 24, 2019

Incheon United

1 - 2

Sangju Sangmu

May 19, 2019

Sangju Sangmu

1 - 3

Seoul

Seongnam

1 - 2

Gangwon

English Premier League

Most recent soccer data here. The system is currently retrieving statistics from data feed.

#

Team

P

1

AFC Bournemouth

0

2

Arsenal

0

3

Brighton & Hov…

0

4

Burnley

0

5

Chelsea

0

6

Crystal Palace

0

7

Everton

0

8

Leicester City

0

9

Liverpool

0

10

Manchester City

0

11

Manchester United

0

12

Newcastle United

0

13

Norwich City

0

14

Sheffield United

0

15

Southampton

0

16

Tottenham Hotspur

0

17

Watford

0

18

West Ham United

0

19

Wolverhampton Wanderers

0

Hwang Heechan

Most recent soccer data here. The system is currently retrieving statistics from data feed.

#

Team

P

1

Red Bull Salzburg

55

Bundesliga

Most recent soccer data here. The system is currently retrieving statistics from data feed.

#

Team

P

1

Bayern München

78

2

Borussia Dortmund

76

3

RB Leipzig

66

4

Bayer 04 Leverkusen

58

5

Borussia Mönchengladbach

55

6

Wolfsburg

55

7

Eintracht Frankfurt

54

8

Werder Bremen

53

9

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim

51

10

Fortuna Düsseldorf

44

11

Hertha BSC

43

12

1. FSV Mainz 05

43

13

SC Freiburg

36

14

Schalke 04

33

15

Augsburg 1907

32

16

Stuttgart

28

17

Hannover 96

21

18

Nürnberg

19

Kwon Changhoon

Most recent soccer data here. The system is currently retrieving statistics from data feed.

#

Team

P

18

Dijon

34

Search for:

The Tavern of the Taeguk Warriors is an online community of Korean football/soccer supporters. We bring you news, analysis and opinion in English about Korean players abroad, youth players and the K League.